Nature

92 Stories

On a wing and a prairie: Puget Sound butterfly avoids extinction with human help

They're surprisingly fuzzy. Each wing looks like a mini-masterpiece of stained-glass art, in orange, black, and white.
- John Ryan
What the eruption of Mount St. Helens reveals about kite-flying spiders

May 18, 2025, marks the 45th anniversary of Mount St. Helens' eruption — a catastrophic event that transformed the landscape and killed 57 people. From this devastation emerged an incredible scientific calculation about millions of spiders traveling through the sky.
- Brandi Fullwood
Main road into Hoh Rainforest set to reopen this week after months-long closure

The main road into the Hoh Rainforest is set to reopen on Thursday after being closed since December.
- Casey Martin
'You Are Here' and you are writing. Readers get creative for National Poetry Month

This is the KUOW Book Club, and we're reading "You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World" edited by 24th U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón. I'm your guide, Katie Campbell. I asked y'all to try writing a poem of your own — you delivered.
- Katie Campbell
This one weekend a year, the North Cascades Highway is (unofficially) just for bikes

Washington State Route 20 is closed while crews remove months of snow and ice from the scenic drive through the Cascades. But one weekend a year, cyclists pedal through the mountains with the road all to themselves.
- Casey Martin
Tooth be told: Sea otters have a powerful bite

Sea otters are incredible marine wrestlers, packing some serious strength under all that fluff.
- Brandi Fullwood
Grab your binoculars — Seattle's skies abound with eagles this season

The skies above Seattle have been busy with lots of bald eagles as spring approaches. Meanwhile, local bird enthusiasts say the season seems busier than usual this year.
- Casey Martin
Trump canceled the ‘National Nature Assessment.’ Scientists want to publish it anyway

Study participant says Americans across the political spectrum really care about our natural heritage.
- Kim Malcolm
Invasive ‘murder hornets’ eradicated from the U.S.

The Washington and U.S. Departments of Agriculture announced the eradication Wednesday, saying there had been no detections of the northern giant hornet in Washington since 2021.
- Gene Johnson, Associated Press
Quick tips for avoiding the crowds and enjoying the great outdoors in the PNW

Whether you’re getting ready to hit the trails for the first time, or you’re a seasoned outdoors aficionado — Soundside is here to help you get prepped for hot hiking summer in the Pacific Northwest.
- Libby Denkmann

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